1. Field of the Invention
The present invention provides an improvement in planting apparatus for use with environmental seed cells or disks as exemplified by the disks of U.S. Pat. No. 3,690,034, issued Sept. 12, 1972 to Philip B. Knapp. This application is directed to an improvement on the planter apparatus disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,912,122, issued Oct. 14, 1975 to Philip B. Knapp and Jon R. Zogg.
2. Discussion of the Prior Art
The planter apparatus of the U.S. Pat. No. 3,912,122 provides means for singulating seed disks dispensed from a hopper and for moving the seed cells along a slot formed between two closely positioned parallel oppositely driven rollers having a friction coating until the seed disks reached the lower end of the inclined roller and were dropped through a slot, formed by a recess at the leading end portion of said rollers, into the furrow. The planter apparatus of this patent utilized traction wheels separate from the planter modules to drive a common drive shaft connected to several moving parts of the modules used for separating the seed disks.
While this structure provides for the separation of the seed disks from the hopper and transfers the same to the discharge chute, the planter structure tended to vibrate causing the seeds to be unevenly conveyed toward the discharge chute and the same were not positively fed from the ends of the rollers through the opening in one of the rollers to the discharge chute.
The planter apparatus of the present invention utilizes a drive system which is integral with each of the planter modules, each of which are independently pivotally supported from a common tool bar and biased therefrom for positive engagement with the ground surface. The structure of the planter apparatus is similar to that of the earlier application as concerns the separation of the seed cells, but the same are transferred in the present device from the separating mechanism to the dispensing end of the chassis by a pair of parallel knurled rollers which are driven in the same direction, thus maintaining greater control of the seed cell by continual contact therewith to advance the same along the incline rollers to the discharge end. The knurl in the rollers is helical and at an angle of about 20.degree. to the axis. At the discharge end of the rollers one of the rollers is provided with a helical rib which positively drives a seed cell from the end of the rollers into the discharge chute. From the discharge chute the seed cell falls into a furrow formed by the furrow shoe, and is then packed by the trailing packing wheel. The packing wheel serves to drive the inclined disk transport rollers and the separating mechanism in the planter. The planter chassis is mounted by parallel linkages and is urged toward the ground by two spring dampening members from the tool bar. One of the dampening members also urges the packing wheel into engagement.